Integral and peripheral forms of a microsomal retinol dehydrogenase (RoDH) have been distinguished in rat liver through differences in solubility, behavior toward affinity resins, and phase partitioning with Triton X-114. Despite physical differences, polyclonal antibodies raised against integral RoDH recognized peripheral RoDH. No obvious differences were observed in substrate specificity between the two forms. Integral and peripheral RoDH catalyzed retinal synthesis from all-trans-retinol bound to cellular retinol-binding protein, type I (CRBP), with similar Km values of 0.6 and 0.4 microM, respectively. Both also discriminated against CRBP-bound all-trans-3,4-didehydroretinol and against 9-cis-retinol. Phenylarsine oxide inhibited both forms with IC50 values of 5 microM (integral) and 15 microM (peripheral). The more stable peripheral form has been reduced to two major polypeptides that migrate as 34 and 54 kDa bands on SDS-PAGE. The active site of this form has been associated with the 34 kDa polypeptide by covalent binding and inactivation with phenylarsine oxide and by cross-linking to holo-CRBP. Cross-linking required cofactor and was maximum with NADP, consistent with the ordered bisubstrate reaction mechanism of an NADP-supported dehydrogenase. The 34 kDa polypeptide has a subunit molecular weight and other attributes typical of short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases (SCAD) including the highly-conserved SCAD sequence WXLVNNAG, Zn2+ independence; inhibition by carbenoxolone (IC50 = 55 microM), and insensitivity to inhibition by ethanol and 4-methylpyrazole. Tight association between the 34 and 54 kDa polypeptides was demonstrated by their coelution through several columns and the precipitation of RoDH activity with either anti-34 kDa or anti-54 kDa antisera. Because SCAD normally occur as homomultimers, however, the 54 kDa polypeptide is not likely to be a subunit of the peripheral form. This work provides new evidence that the retinol-CRBP "cassette" serves as a substrate for a microsomal RoDH and further characterizes the RoDH.

This study shows that microsomal retinol dehydrogenases, versus cytosolic retinol dehydrogenases, provide the quantitatively major share of retinal for retinoic acid (RA) biogenesis in rat tissues from the predominant substrate available physiologically, holo-cellular retinol-binding protein, type I (CRBP). With holo-CRBP as substrate in the absence of apo-CRBP microsomal retinol dehydrogenases have the higher specific activity and capacity to generate retinal used for RA synthesis by cytosolic retinal dehydrogenases. In the presence of apo-CRBP, a potent inhibitor of cytosolic retinol dehydrogenases (IC 50 ‫؍‬ ϳ1 M), liver microsomes provide 93% of the total retinal synthesized in a combination of microsomes and cytosol. Cytosolic retinol dehydrogenase(s) and the isozymes of alcohol dehydrogenase expressed in rat liver had distinct enzymatic properties; yet ethanol inhibited cytosolic retinol dehydrogenase(s) (IC 50 ‫؍‬ 20 M) while stimulating RA synthesis in a combination of microsomes and cytosol. At least two discrete forms of cytosolic retinol dehydrogenase were observed: NAD-and NADP-dependent forms. Multiple retinal dehydrogenases also were observed and were inhibited partially by apo-CRBP. These results provide new insights into pathways of RA biogenesis and provide further evidence that they consist of multiple enzymes that recognize both liganded and nonliganded states of CRBP.

Retinoic acid, a hormone biosynthesized from retinol, controls numerous biological systems by regulating eukaryotic gene expression from conception through death. This work reports the cloning and expression of a liver cDNA encoding a microsomal retinol dehydrogenase (RoDH), which catalyzes the primary and rate-limiting step in retinoic acid synthesis. The predicted amino acid sequence and biochemical data obtained from the recombinant enzyme verify it as a short-chain alcohol dehydrogenase. Like microsomal RoDH, the recombinant enzyme recognized as substrate retinol bound to cellular retinol-binding protein, had higher activity with NADP rather than NAD, was stimulated by ethanol or phosphatidylcholine, was not inhibited by 4-methylpyrazole, was inhibited by phenylarsine oxide and carbenoxolone and localized to microsomes. RoDH recognized the physiological form of retinol, holocellular retinol-binding protein, with a Km of 0.9 microM, a value lower than the approximately 5 microM concentration of holocellular retinol binding protein in liver. Northern and Western blot analyses revealed RoDH expression only in rat liver, despite enzymatic activity in liver, brain, kidney, lung, and testes. These data suggest that tissue-specific isozyme(s) of short chain alcohol dehydrogenases catalyze the first step in retinoic acid biogenesis and further strengthen the evidence that the "cassette" of retinol bound to cellular retinol-binding protein serves as a physiological substrate.

Holocellular retinol binding protein (holo-CRBP) was substrate for retinal synthesis at physiological pH with microsomes prepared from rat liver, kidney, lung, and testes. Four observations indicated that retinal synthesis was supported by holo-CRBP directly, rather than by the unbound retinol in equilibrium with CRBP. First, the rate of retinal synthesis with holo-CRBP exceeded the rate that was observed from the concentration of unbound retinol in equilibrium with CRBP. Second, NADP was the preferred cofactor only with holo-CRBP, supporting a rate about 3-fold greater than that of NAD. In contrast, with unbound retinol as substrate, similar rates of retinal formation were supported by either NAD or NADP. Third, the rate of retinal synthesis was not related to the decrease in the concentration of unbound retinol in equilibrium with holo-CRBP caused by increasing the concentration of apo-CRBP. Fourth, the rate of retinal synthesis increased with increases in the concentration of holo-CRBP as a fixed concentration of unbound retinol was maintained. This was achieved by increasing both apo-CRBP and holo-CRBP, but keeping constant the ratio apo-CRBP/holo-CRBP. Retinal formation from holo-CRBP displayed typical Michaelis-Menten kinetics with a Km about 1.6 microM, less than the physiological retinal concentration of 4-10 microM in the livers of rats fed diets with recommended vitamin A levels. The Vmax for retinal formation from holo-CRBP was 14-17 pmol min-1 (mg of protein)-1, a rate sufficiently high to generate adequate retinal to contribute significantly to retinoic acid synthesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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